Believe it or not, the 21st century isn’t that young anymore. We’re nearly a quarter of the way through the century, so now feels like a good time to start looking at the first part of the century in a historical context.
We’ve seen multiple instances of what could be considered a dynasty in the NBA. However, everything always seems to come back to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Lakers Dominant Throughout History
Along with the Celtics and perhaps the 76ers, the Lakers were the preeminent franchise in the NBA during the 20th century. Before the year 2000, the Lakers won 11 NBA titles, which is more than any other franchise other than the Celtics.
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But the championships have kept on coming for the Lakers in the 21st century. Year after year, they are among the leading favorites in the Western Conference, as they continue to put together star-studded rosters.
Naturally, the Lakers are a popular choice at most betting sites. Luckily for fans, sports betting has become legal in most corners of the world, making it easy to place bets on NBA games, as well as a variety of other sports.
Best In 21st Century?
While it’s always reasonable to debate such things, it should be clear that the Lakers have been the best NBA franchise of the 21st century. Despite some stiff competition, let’s explore why the Lakers are the undisputed kings of the 21st century thus far.
For starters, it was the Lakers who hit the ground running at the turn of the century. They began the century in the midst of a three-peat, winning the NBA title in 2000, 2001, and 2002.
In those three championships, Los Angeles went 12-3 in the NBA Finals, dominating whatever team the Eastern Conference produced each year. Behind the great Phil Jackson, the tandem of Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant proved to be almost unstoppable.
During the 2001 playoffs, the Lakers didn’t lose a game until the NBA Finals, going 15-1 in the playoffs. The following year, the Lakers put together a team that some consider to be one of the best of the 21st century, as the supporting cast behind Shaq and Kobe got even better with all-star Mitch Richmond joining the likes of Derek Fisher, Rick Fox, and Brian Shaw.
While a fourth consecutive title wasn’t in the cards, the Lakers remained a Western Conference heavyweight for the remainder of the decade. They returned to the NBA Finals in 2004 and 2008, the latter year being Kobe’s only MVP season.
While there was a lot more on Kobe’s plate when Shaq lost following the team’s 2004 NBA Finals defeat, he eventually proved that he could carry the Lakers to a championship without his former running mate. Kobe won Finals MVP honors in both 2009 and 2010 with Los Angeles winning back-to-back titles yet again.
Between 2000 and 2010, the Lakers would make seven NBA Finals and won five titles in an 11-year span. They dominated the league for over a decade for the longest dynasty of the 21st century. That much success is more than enough to make up for a six-year playoff drought that soon followed amidst a series of failed coaching hires.
Of course, it was the franchise’s resurgence at the end of the 2010s that put the Lakers over the top as the team of the current century. LeBron James arrived in the summer of 2018 and helped to lead a turnaround.
Under head coach Frank Vogel, the Lakers won the 2020 NBA championship inside the infamous COVID bubble. With LeBron leading the Lakers to a somewhat miraculous run to the Western Conference Finals as the no. 7 seed in 2023, the franchise showed that it can accomplish great things, even with an imperfect roster. That’s yet another reason why the Lakers have been the best franchise of the 21st century.
Other Considerations
In fairness, both the Warriors and Spurs deserve consideration. Under Gregg Popovich, San Antonio has arguably been the NBA’s most consistent franchise of the 25 years. The Spurs have five NBA Finals appearances and four championships since 2003. But they also haven’t won a playoff series since 2017, falling completely off the map since then and becoming one of the league’s worst teams.
As for the Warriors, they deserve a vast amount of credit for their five straight NBA Finals appearances, as well as six appearances in eight years. With four championships in those eight years, Golden State’s dynasty is among the best in NBA history. However, they accomplished nothing prior to the 2013 season, which was just their second playoff appearance of the century.
From the start of the 21st century until today, the Lakers have undoubtedly been the most accomplished NBA franchise. They’ve been dominant for long stretches and consistent over the long haul in a way that no other NBA team can match. While there are many decades left, the Lakers currently hold the title of the best franchise of the 21st century.